Equities diverged Tuesday as investors grappled to extend Wall Street’s rally despite easing concerns over Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs. Traders also looked ahead to the release of key U.S. inflation data. A surge in tech giants, including Tesla and Nvidia, bolstered New York markets, buoyed by indications from the White House that next week’s levies might be less severe than initially feared.
Asia-Pacific markets rose on Tuesday, tracking gains on Wall Street, which helped ease recession concerns. Hong Kong led gains in Asia, increasing 2.29% in its last hour of trading, propelled by strong moves in tech giants like Baidu, which was up 12.11% at 3:45 p.m. local time. Meanwhile, mainland China’s indices advanced 0.27% to end the day at 4,007.72.
Investors are closely watching Japanese markets as the Bank of Japan kicks off its two-day monetary policy meeting on Tuesday. When the meeting concludes on Wednesday, the central bank is expected to maintain its interest rate at 0.5%. This coincides with the U.S. Federal Reserve’s meeting, which will likely keep interest rates unchanged.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 ended the day 1.20% higher at 37,845.42, while the broader Topix index rose 1.29% to 2,783.56. Over in South Korea, the Kospi index closed flat at 2,612.34, while the small-cap Kosdaq added 0.27% to end at 745.54. Australia’s ASX 200 ended the day flat at 7,860.40, paring gains from earlier in the session.
India’s benchmark Nifty 50 added 1.20%, while the BSE Sensex increased 1.07% by 1:15 p.m. local time.
Tech surge lifts markets globally
Swiss investment bank Julius Baer has downgraded its “long-standing constructive stance” on U.S. equities in favor of opportunities in other markets.
“With U.S. equities in oversold territory and a short-term countertrend bounce likely, we see this as an opportunity to further diversify into non-U.S. markets in the coming weeks,” wrote Mathieu Racheter, head of equity strategy research at Julius Baer. Shares in Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Nio rallied on Tuesday, rising 17.24% by 11:57 a.m. local time. This surge follows the announcement of its partnership with Chinese battery manufacturer CATL.
The collaboration aims to build a battery-swapping network for passenger vehicles and provide efficient recharging solutions. Hong Kong’s shares traded more than 2% higher on Tuesday, continuing their strong performance for the year. The Hang Seng Tech Index was up 3.28% at 2:43 p.m. local time, driven by top performers such as Baidu, which added 11.79%, and Alibaba, which rose 8.03%.
Spot gold appreciated by 0.39%, reaching a fresh record high of $3,013.35 per ounce on Tuesday morning, Singapore time. The price surge came ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy meeting, which concludes Wednesday. Market watchers expect the central bank to keep interest rates unchanged.
Shares in Chinese automaker BYD rose as much as 8.85% shortly after the opening, following the announcement of a new fast-charging technology for electric vehicles. Shares in Japanese insurer Tokio Marine rose as much as 5.03% on Tuesday, extending gains for the fifth straight trading session. Australia’s central bank is more cautious than the market regarding further policy easing following its interest rate cut last month—the first such easing since November 2020.
Image Credits: Photo by Lo Lo on Unsplash
